May 13, 2025
Mr. Blumenthal (for himself, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Schiff, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Welch, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Booker, Ms. Warren, Mr. Ossoff, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Coons, and Mr. Van Hollen) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration
Directing the Senate Legal Counsel to bring a civil action in the name of the United States Senate to enforce the Foreign Emoluments Clause contained in clause 8 of section 9 of article I of the Constitution of the United States.
Whereas the Foreign Emoluments Clause contained in clause 8 of section 9 of article I of the Constitution of the United States (in this preamble referred to as the Foreign Emoluments Clause
) states that no present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind, may be accepted by the President of the United States from a king, prince, or foreign state without the consent of Congress;
Whereas the Founders included the Foreign Emoluments Clause in the Constitution—by unanimous agreement of the State delegations—to ensure the President would remain loyal to the Nation and the public interest;
Whereas the Foreign Emoluments Clause has long been understood to be
;directed against every kind of influence by foreign governments upon officers of the United States,
in the absence of consent by Congress
Whereas President Donald J. Trump reportedly plans to—
(1)
accept a plane from the government of Qatar for United States Government use as Air Force One during the Trump Administration; and
(2)
transfer that plane nominally to the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library shortly before the expiration of his term of office but continue personal use of the plane after his Presidency;
Whereas MGX Fund Management Limited is an investment firm established and backed by the government of the United Arab Emirates;
Whereas, on May 1, 2025, MGX Fund Management Limited announced an agreement to use a stablecoin from the cryptocurrency business World Liberty Financial, which is owned in part by President Trump and members of his family, to complete a $2,000,000,000 deal with Binance Holdings Ltd. (in this preamble referred to as the MGX Fund-Binance deal
);
Whereas, as a result of the MGX Fund-Binance deal, President Trump and the family of President Trump stand to receive hundreds of millions of dollars from a foreign state;
Whereas, since the election of President Trump, businesses owned in whole or in part by President Trump have announced other deals involving the governments of Saudi Arabia, Serbia, and Oman;
Whereas the President of the United States has a constitutional and statutory obligation to uphold the public trust; and
Whereas the violation of the Foreign Emoluments Clause undermines public trust and the integrity of public office in the United States: Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate Legal Counsel shall bring a civil action in the name of the United States Senate to enforce the Foreign Emoluments Clause contained in clause 8 of section 9 of article I of the Constitution of the United States with respect to the emoluments described in the fourth, sixth, and eighth whereas clauses of the preamble by enjoining President Donald J. Trump from accepting any present, emolument, office, or title of any kind whatever from a foreign state without obtaining the consent of Congress.